How to pray

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Christina

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Apr 10, 2006
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How to pray Many believe that when they pray to God they need to be in church, or in the presence of others. Some believe that they must be assigned special prayers, or penance. Some don't think they need to pray at all. Lets see what the Bible says about prayer. And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples. (Luke 11:1) Jesus was out praying as He often did, and one of the disciples came to Him and asked if He would teach them a prayer to recite just as John taught one of his disciples. Jesus taught them the Lord's prayer. If you are not familiar with this prayer, it will be at the end of the study. Jesus would also explain to the disciples that if we are persistent in prayer we will have our prayers answered. He uses an illustration in (Luke 11:5-13) that everyone who knocks at the door, the door will open. We need to tell our Heavenly Father our needs, even though He knows what we already need. Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7) He tells us not to worry about anything, but instead to pray about everything. Just tell God your needs and don't forget to thank Him for His answers. If we do this we will experience God's peace, which is more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will keep our thoughts and heart at rest as we trust in Jesus Christ. It is also important to know that we should not pray for the pleasures of this world. Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. (James 4:2-3) This is hard to take in, but is so true of the world today. Many want what they don't have, so they kill to get it. They long for what others have, but can't afford it, so they go deep into debt, or even start a fight to take it away from others. And yet the reason they don't have what they want is because they don't ask God for it. Even when they do ask they don't get it because their whole aim is wrong... They usually want what will only give them pleasure. You cannot expect God to answer your prayers if these are your intensions. Rather pray for things of the Spirit. God will give strength to the humble, but sets himself against the proud and those who are arrogant. And to end our study, we will go to the book of Matthew and the words of Jesus on how we should pray. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him. (Matthew 6:6-8) Jesus explains to us that when we pray it should be by ourselves, behind closed doors. Pray to our Heavenly Father in secret, and our Father who knows our secrets will reward us. Many will pray out loud in front of others, because it makes them feel so holy. He also explains to us not to recite the same prayer over and over as the heathens do, who think prayers are answered only by repeating them again and again. Sound familiar? How does your church pray? Remember, your Heavenly Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask Him. Jesus would then give His example on how to pray along these lines: This is the Lord's prayer. Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen. (Matthew 6:9-13)Keep The Faith,Bart
 

barshaddai

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Aug 2, 2007
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Prayer is a two way communication, the other party being God. Bible says He created ears, so He must know about "hearing" us when we speak to Him and if He created mouth for talking amongst other functions, He must also be in the business of speaking back. So when I approach God in prayer I simply come in faith believing He is hearing every word, every sigh, every sound I make, and may speak to me through any of sundry ways if He chooses, He is the Boss. Awesome God!
 

hotprincesscm

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Sep 6, 2007
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So wonderfully put! Prayer is a very personal thing. Everyone prays differently. But yes, praying by yourself I think is the most peaceful and rewarding way, to have a conversation and be at peace with our heavenly father!
 

Jordan

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Apr 6, 2007
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That is so wonderfullu put Kriss (I know it's not yours)
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Lovest thou in Christ Jesus (Yahshua) our Lord and Saviour.
 

Amy

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Aug 7, 2007
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Wonderful sharing sister Kriss
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If I may add my understanding and experience:Once when I was young, I really wanted something and I was very persistent to ask God for it. I shared my desire with my aunt who has been a great guidance for me in matters of faith. She told me that I might not get it after all. I showed her the passages from the bible where it says seek and it shall be given to you and I told her what she has been telling me that our God is God of miracles, that nothing is impossible with God. To this, she said... If I pray day and night that God change fire into water and water into fire, it may never happen because God intented the fire to be fire and water to be water. So sometimes persistence never pays off because what we ask for is against the nature of things. We must understand that sometimes the biggest blessing that we have is our answered prayers. To this, she gave me another example, imagine you are crossing a road with your mother. It is a scientific fact that children lack comprehensive sense. That they are yet not developed and therefore, they may not comprehend the consequenses of crossing the road in a rush. But your mother can see an on coming truck. So she quickly pushes you to the otherside. We as a kid see that push as a harsh deal. We might get scratches and might feel hurt physically and emotionally by our mothers reaction. But what we can not comprehend is that few scratches have saved us from a deadly situation. Therefore, at all times we must put our trust in God. So rightly said, ''Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven''. At the end of our prayers we must say this for we are feeble in our desires. In our life His will should rule.This is my simpler version. As a kid these little stories made a lot of sense for me
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I also believe that prayers are a personal matter. It is between God and you. It's a sacred bond. But, the power of multitude prayers can not be underestimated. That's why sometimes we give out prayer requests. In addition, (I don't remember the reference) we need to go in a room and close the door but pray out loud. The significance of this is that satan tempts us by leadingus to temptations but he can not read our thoughts. Like in Jobs case we see that God gave permission to test Job physically but not to hurt his soul. Our thoughts are our own, that is free will and our soul belongs to God. Satan can not enter these zones I believe. So the importance of praying out loud when we are alone is not that God is deaf, or he dosen't know what we need before we ask but sometimes praying out loud is a confirmation to satan of who we belong to. That is why we should also sing hyms and praise God loud for I believe it repel's satan. Praying together as a family, has it's own importance as it disciplines and guide our children.Having said that, again I emphasis that prayer is a personal thing. We have freedom to choose as we please but at any point it should not be a 'show / demonstration' surely God knows are intentions.Note: This is my understanding till now, any of the readers may agree or disagree but please don't stone me. Your views on topic are however, welcomed :pray: